Not long after the new passage appeared, players emerged at its far end. There were four of them. They walked forward and checked the paths to their left, right, and ahead, then chose the direction the three players had come from—the same direction Xu Huo and Mu Yan had just arrived from.
Although a maze's paths didn't necessarily lead back the way you came, Mu Yan didn't think that passage was the right one.
Sure enough, the first group of three came back. When they saw the newly formed passage, they plunged into it without hesitation.
Just then, the passage to Mu Yan's left closed, and the maze wall behind them split apart again, forming a new passage.
"That's strange..." She frowned and was about to go take a look when a second group emerged from one side of the new passage. Both sides were surprised to see each other.
The group of five came back over. Seeing that the shelter hadn't moved, they exchanged glances, and one of them—a short-haired, spirited-looking woman—stepped forward to speak with Mu Yan. She asked if the maze passages had changed.
"The passage to the left is gone, and there's a new one both ahead and behind us," Mu Yan answered honestly.
"What's going on?" A player with a scar on his left cheek jabbed the maze wall twice with his knife. "We've looped back again."
"That doesn't make sense," said the short-statured female player beside him. "We've been in the maze for ages, and nothing like this has happened. The maze shouldn't be blocking our way."
"Maybe the second half of the maze gets harder?" guessed the player in the leather cap.
"Not necessarily." The last player, whose face was half covered, glanced meaningfully at Mu Yan.
One by one, his companions turned